Explosive Offense Powers K-State to Series Win Over Houston

K-State baseball improved to 15–5 on the season after taking two of three games against Houston over the weekend. The first two games were a showcase of K-State's powerful offense, which exploded for 20 and 16 runs to run-rule Houston in each game. The final game on Sunday was a much closer matchup, even though the final score does not make it appear that way, with the Cats dropping that game 16–6 and getting run-ruled after eight innings.

The weekend had been rolling smoothly for K-State. The Wildcats totaled 37 hits and 36 runs in the first two games. After the first inning of Sunday’s game, it appeared things might be heading toward a third run rule on the weekend after Carlos Vasquez launched a grand slam to put the Cats up 4–0.

The game continued to be a back-and-forth affair, with K-State leading 6–5 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning. Then Houston started rocking the K-State pitchers. Seven hits drove in 11 runs as the Cougars run-ruled the Cats 16–6 in the same inning they had entered trailing 6–5. It was a very bitter way to end a weekend that was, overall, very good.

One inning doesn’t change the fact that K-State had a very impressive weekend. The pitching staff performed well during the first two games, with James Guyette earning his third win of the season. Tanner Duke also threw all seven innings of the second game, earning the win while striking out nine Cougar batters.

The earlier callout of K-State's offense is also important to emphasize. This offense is very explosive, and it seems like different players step up with the bat each game. This week, my offensive standouts were Shintaro Inoue and Carlos Vasquez.

Inoue had the breakout performance many had been waiting for, going 10-for-14 with eight RBIs, a double, and a home run. It will be interesting to see if this spark carries over into the next few games and if Inoue can gain more consistency as the season goes on.

Vasquez is starting to become one of my favorite hitters to watch. His power is very impressive, and when he hits a bomb, it goes a long way. Vasquez went 6-for-12 with 10 RBIs, two doubles, and a home run.

I prefer to look at this weekend as a whole, even though the last inning of the series definitely left a sour taste in my mouth. It will be interesting to see how the Cats rebound tomorrow at Baylor.